Jelly Roll has opened a music studio at the Nashville Juvenile Detention Center. The artist once stayed their when he was a juvenile himself and wanted to help youth there.
The artist played an opening show with ERNEST to celebrate the new studio. Jelly Roll reportedly funded the music studio out of pocket with money he's made from touring. A press release explained the singer's intention for the studio.
The statement to ET says, "This collaboration, featuring music luminaries Jeffrey Steele and ERNEST, alongside 35 pro/hit songwriters who helped kick off the program launch, embodies the belief in music's role in personal growth and redemption, showcasing the journey from juvenile detention to success."
Previously, Jelly Roll opened up about how music played a defining role in his life. He used to listen to music while incarcerated. "I think at some point in life, everything in life has let me down. But music was always my constant," he shared. "Like, when I had nothing else, I had a boombox. When I was incarcerated, I had a set of headphones and a little radio."
Jelly Roll Talks Music
Music even helped him through the passing of his father.
"In the darkest moments of my life, at my father's funeral, it was music that helped me cope," he recalled. "Music was always there to give me a hug. So I just want to do that for people."
The musician also talked about his process to songwriting. He's not afraid to show his songs to people while they're still in progress.
"I'm constantly writing songs to show people that it's okay to be a work in progress. It's okay to still meet yourself in the middle," Jelly Roll said. "But I also wanted to make sure this time that I added the hopefulness to it and the tempo. I had some tempo changes. I wanted to be more uplifting, more major keys."
Jelly Roll continued saying that connecting with fans is what ultimately matters the most.
"There's no amount of celebrity or money that will ever mean more than the lady I just saw in the parking lot that's from Antioch, Tennessee, and asking if she takes a picture and just told me her brief piece of her story and what she's overcome in life and how I inspired that," he shared. "You could throw billions of dollars at me, it'll never have the effect that I get, that feeling, when fans tell me the music helped them."
